Emmerdale have treated us to some cracking whodunnits over the years, drawing fans into the mystery and giving them the chance to play detective.
The latest crime we’re all trying to solve is who killed Anthony Fox? Ruby’s rapist dad was murdered just hours after his crimes became public knowledge. Right now it looks like Aaron Dingle beat him to death, but there are clues that’s not the whole story.
Anthony isn’t the only villain to have found themselves at the centre of a gripping whodunnit. Here we look back at those puzzling cases that kept us guessing until the big reveal…
Emmerdale best whodunnits: Who murdered Tom King?
Perhaps Emmerdale’s most famous whodunnit, Tom’s murder was the centre of the 2006 Christmas special.
The nasty King patriarch had just married the equally loathsome Rosemary Sinclair, but what should have been a day of celebration ended in disaster. While getting ready for the reception in his bedroom at Home Farm, Tom was approached by a mystery figure. An argument ensued, Tom was clobbered over the head with an ornament and pushed out of the window to his death.
There were 10 official suspects in the frame for the crime, including all three of Tom’s sons and his new bride. And in a soap first, Emmerdale gave fans the chance to play detective by launching an online game so they could gather clues.
After five months of keeping everyone guessing, Tom’s son Carl was unmasked as the killer. But instead of being carted off down the cop shop, Carl remained in the village. He’d got away with murder, but the soap gods always find a way to punish. In the end, Carl got his comeuppance when he was bumped off by serial killer Cameron Murray in 2012.
Who attacked Cain Dingle?
In 2011, Emmerdale announced Cain Dingle would be attacked in a whodunnit, dubbed ‘Judgement Day’. The storyline made perfect sense as Cain was the most hated man in the Dales.
His affair with Moira had destroyed the Barton family, he’d got 17-year-old Amy Wyatt pregnant, made an enemy of Jai Sharma and managed to alienate his own family.
After a showdown one night in The Woolpack Cain was bludgeoned with a crowbar. He tried to escape, but was struck again over the head and left for dead. Moments later, Cameron Murray came across the scene of the crime and saw Jai standing over the body, his hands covered in Cain’s blood.
Cain was rushed to hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery for a clot on the brain. He came out of his coma and tried to frame Jai for the crime. Moira’s wronged husband John was also arrested, but then released due to a lack of evidence.
On January 5, 2012 – less than a month after the attack – Cain’s own dad Zak was revealed to be the perpetrator. Zak confessed he’d wanted to teach Cain a lesson for his continual bad behaviour and disgracing the Dingle name. Cain eventually forgave his father and agreed to drop the charges against Jai.
Emmerdale best whodunnits: Who shot Robert Sugden?
Ruthless Robert was another one who didn’t give a damn who he hurt. So it was only a matter of time before he ended up with a bullet in him.
In September 2015, Robert became public enemy number one after it was revealed he’d pushed Katie Sugden to her death. One of his haters took their revenge by gunning Rob down in the village.
Emmerdale added a twist to the tale by deciding to reveal the shooter in a special flashback episode, which aired the month later.
The clock was rewound and viewers discovered Robert’s adoptive brother, Andy was the culprit. He’d wanted Robert dead for what he did to Katie, but had paid Ross Barton to pull the trigger for him.
Who killed Emma Barton?
Killer nurse Emma Barton got her comeuppance when she was shoved off Hotten Viaduct in October 2017. The discovery of her body sparked a huge whodunnit, with lots of twists and turns along the way.
In the lead up to her death, Emma was spiraling out of control. The year before she’d pushed husband James off a bridge during the Hotten Bypass. She’d also accidentally killed her youngest son Finn and kidnapped Moira Dingle’s baby Isaac. Haunted by hallucinations of James, Emma drove herself to the viaduct to end it all.
First thoughts were that Emma had committed suicide, but it then became clear it was murder. There were many who had reason to want Emma gone, but only one who hated her enough to kill. And that one person was Moira.
The truth was revealed in flashback scenes, which were cleverly intertwined with present day. Moira confessed to the police that she’d pushed Emma, but escaped punishment after her son Adam managed to convince them he was the killer. He then fled the country as a fugitive.
Emmerdale best whodunnits: Who pushed Kim Tate?
Kim Tate’s dramatic return in 2018 was a night to remember after she got pushed off a balcony by an unknown culprit.
Guests had gathered at Home Farm for a charity masquerade ball when Kim made her entrance. Fresh from jail and looking a million dollars, Kim announced she was back on the throne. But within minutes, the superbitch was making enemies with just about everyone.
One partygoer did not take kindly to Kim’s insults and shoved her over the balcony. Kim came crashing down on a champagne tower and for a moment fans feared she was dead.
Charity Dingle was arrested for the attack as witnesses had seen her quarreling with Kim, but in fact it was Faith Dingle who ‘fessed up to the deed. Faith showed little remorse, admitting everyone at the ball wanted to give ‘that witch a shove’.
And as for Kim, she lived to tell the tale, but was carted back to prison for driving without a licence.
Who was Graham Foster’s killer?
Emmerdale kicked 2020 off in style with the murder of fan-favourite Graham Foster. Joe Tate’s former right-hand man made a lot of enemies during his two years in the village.
Graham’s on-off affair with Kim Tate had turned toxic after he’d started dating Rhona Goskirk, and she’d already instructed Al Chapman to kill him. Charity Dingle was baying for Graham’s blood after he locked her son Ryan Stocks in a shed. And then there was Marlon Dingle, who was desperate to stop Graham leaving the country with Rhona and Leo.
On January 20, 2020, Graham arranged to meet Marlon in the woods to discuss matters. But he never got the chance when he was walloped over the head by a hooded figure, who revealed themselves to be Rhona’s ex-husband and rapist Pierce Harris.
It turned out the pair had history after Graham visited Pierce in prison and had him beaten up. This time Pierce came out on top. He attacked Graham with a log, causing him to fall off a cliff. Pierce then delivered the final, fatal, blow with a torch!
Emmerdale best whodunnits: Who attacked Caleb Miligan?
No one was surprised when cold-hearted Caleb was pushed off a steep ravine by one of his foes.
In typical soap style, in the minutes leading up to the attack Caleb was busy making an enemy of just about everyone. But he’d already spent months lying and scheming as part of his mission to destroy Kim Tate.
When the truth came out, the villagers turned on Caleb during a tense showdown in the pub. Afterwards, Caleb took a walk into the countryside to think on his sins. But he wasn’t alone. Someone followed behind and shoved him over the edge of a woodland ridge.
Several characters were seen acting suspiciously at the time and most had their money on Mackenzie Boyd. However, it later transpired Caleb’s son Nicky was responsible for the violent attack. Viewers learnt the truth when the nanny paid his comatose father a visit in hospital and apologised for what he’d done.
Caleb came round and revealed he’d known all along it was Nicky. But he chose to forgive his boy, acknowledging it was his fault for forcing Nicky to take part in his dastardly schemes.
How did Craig Reed die?
The body of Lydia Dingle’s rapist was discovered on in the middle of a field back in October 2023, sparking what turned out to be Emmerdale’s most surprising whodunnit. It was a confusing case, but viewers only had to wait four days for the big reveal.
During a special week of episodes, the Dingles took centre stage at a lock-in at The Woolpack. One by one, the family were interrogated by Lydia, as she questioned their whereabouts the day Craig died.
Huge secrets were revealed, and for a while it looked as if Sam had murdered his wife’s abuser. But in a twist that, let’s face it, no one saw coming, Craig’s killer turned out to be Kim Tate’s horse, Ice.
Flashback scenes revealed Kim was out riding when she encountered Craig on her land. Bloodied and bruised after being beaten by Sam, Craig was raving like a loony. He jumped in front of Ice, who reacted by trampling Craig. By the time Cain arrived on the scene Craig was on his way out, so he and Kim opted not to dial 999. Instead the pair just calmly departed, leaving Craig to perish.
What did we say about those soap gods?
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Read more: Everything you need to know about the Dingles
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights on ITV at 7.30pm, with an early release on ITVX at 7am.
Classic Emmerdale usually airs every weekday on ITV3 at 6am and 6.30am, plus 1.40pm and 2.10pm.
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